There are worse traits for a new NBA owner to have, and it's not worth rehashing how the guy who used to be in Ballmer's place, now-former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, had more than a few regrettable traits of his own. But when lifelong basketball junkie/NBA veteran Jamal Crawford looked up from his bouncing ball so many years ago at a charity game in Spokane, Wash. and saw Ballmer in attendance, he knew then that this filthy-rich man who ran Microsoft for so many years had a genuine passion for the game that should now serve him well.

"At the root of everything he does and has done, he has always loved basketball," Crawford, a Seattle native, told USA TODAY Sports by phone Tuesday after the sale to Ballmer was announced by the NBA. "I remember one time we went to Spokane (Wash.) for a game out there, a charity game, and he flew up there just to watch some pros play. He's always somebody who's very excited and very motivated, and I'm sure he'll be like that (with the Clippers) times 10.

"Going back to the (Seattle Super)Sonics years, he was always a big supporter. And now having his own team, I'm sure he'll be that much more enthused and motivated and excited to keep a championship level contender and be part of something special with him at the helm. I'm very excited for him, personally, since I've known how he feels about the game."

Which is why, when Ballmer showed up at a Clippers-Golden State Warriors playoff game April 29 and sat with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver at the Staples Center, it was hard to draw a clear conclusion about his intentions for being there.

It wasn't outside the realm of possibility that he just wanted to watch a great game, and his longtime friendship with Crawford added a personal component that could have further explained his presence. In retrospect, though, Ballmer clearly wasted no time in exploring this opportunity and ultimately decided that this significant slice of his wealth was worth the price to feed his passion (his personal wealth, according to Forbes, is $21.3 billion, ranking him 31st in the world).

"I am humbled and honored to be the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers," Ballmer said in a news release. "Clipper fans are so amazing. They have remained fiercely loyal to our franchise through some extraordinary times. I will be hard core in giving the team, our great coach, staff and players the support they need to do their best work on the court. And we will do whatever necessary to provide our fans and their families with the best game-night experience in the NBA."

Ballmer is surely elated to have reached the finish line that seemed to keep moving, and he's hardly alone in that sentiment.

"We are relieved that this unfortunate chapter in NBA history is over," Ron Klempner, the acting executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, told USA TODAY Sports. "We look forward to putting the focus back on the court, where it belongs."

For the players, Crawford said the relief comes with the reality that they won't have to discuss all the what-if scenarios that seemed to be in play. Would players boycott if Sterling was still in power? Would Doc Rivers, the team's president of basketball operations and coach, return for a second season or perhaps consider stepping down if it appeared Sterling was going to pull off the upset in court?

"This is an amazing new day in Clippers history," Rivers said in the news release. "I couldn't be more excited to work together with Steve as we continue to build a first-class, championship organization. I am already inspired by Steve's passion for the game, his love of competition and desire to win the right way and I know our players and fans are going to be inspired as well."

It's back to basketball, in other words, just how guys like Ballmer, Rivers and Crawford like it.

"I honestly thought (the situation) would be resolved by (training camp)," Crawford said. "I didn't think it would drag on too much longer, so I didn't have that thought process of, 'Well, if this happens, then this will happen…' I just kind of let it play out and I thought it would be resolved one way or another by then. I'm just happy that we can move forward now and that it's a dead issue.

"I think for a lot of guys, we had kind of moved on from it once everything kind of hit. Because at that point, you know there are going to be stories here and there, people talking about how 'this is happening next, this is going on in the courtroom,' so you kind of just block it out as much as possible and focus on your family and stuff you have to do to get better for the next season and go from there."

Crawford said the internal discussions about what the players might do if this situation wasn't resolved never materialized.

"I hadn't talked to guys about that," he said. "We've just been checking on each other making sure everybody is working hard and getting right for the season and talking about our goals for the season, so that was pretty much the gist of the conversations.

"But yeah, you definitely do (feel relieved) because now it's a closed chapter and you can kind of move on and focus on what's important, and that's trying to make the Clippers the best team that we can be. We have our leadership in place and now we can just go from there."

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Steve Ballmer is the new owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. The former Microsoft CEO's purchase was approved by the NBA on Aug. 12. Flip through this gallery for more photos of Ballmer.
Stephen Brashear, Getty Images

Ballmer watches a Los Angeles Kings game at Staples Center during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs with Kings legend Luc Robitaille.
LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 30: Steve Ballmer, former Microsoft CEO (L), sits with former Los Angeles Kings great Luc Robitaille (R) in the first period in Game Six of the Western Conference Final during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Staples Center on May 30, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. Ballmer has agreed to pay $2 billion for the Los Angeles Clippers. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 492396963 ORIG FILE ID: 494778607
Jeff Gross, Getty Images

Microsoft Corp. president Steve Ballmer speaks at a media conference Monday, Sept. 20, 1999, in San Francisco. Using Microsoft's CarPoint Web site, customers wanting a Taurus, Mustang or Explorer will be able to search existing stocks or even place custom orders to Ford Motor Co. from their home computers under a joint venture announced Monday by Ford and Microsoft Corp. "CarPoint is going to change the way cars are bought and sold with technology that brings together manufacturers and dealers to deliver the services consumers want,'' said Ballmer. (AP Photo/Waggener Edstrom Public Relations/George Nikitin) ORG XMIT: FX102
George Nikitin, AP